Thin Film Electronics ASA is integrating its NFC SpeedTap™ tags in the packaging of Italian olive oil brands to enable product authentication, enhance consumer engagement, and fuel online sales.
The growers, each of which produces its oil on farms in Italy’s Tuscany
region, will use the NFC technology in combination with an award-winning
app called iOlive.
Launched in 2014, iOlive has created a comprehensive electronic guide
and tracking system that catalogues vital data on more than 150 of
Tuscany’s extra virgin olive oils.
The brands working with iOlive and Thinfilm that will utilize the SpeedTap technology in their products include Buonamici, La Ranocchiaia, SPO, and Il Cavallino.
Italy’s olive oil industry has had many fraud scandals, and was recently the focus of a 60 Minutes
television segment in which it was alleged that seven of the country’s
top brands were passing off inferior oil as extra virgin. The damage
caused by the deceit has been tremendous, not only to the industry and
brands, but to consumer trust.
In response, iOlive was launched at Agrietour,
the national exhibition of agritourism and multifunctional agriculture,
held annually in Arezzo, Tuscany. At the event, the ground-breaking
iOlive app was named winner of a 2015 “Green Oscar” for innovative ideas in agriculture.
“The olive oil industry is very similar to the wine industry in that
each has a rich heritage that is centuries old,” said Pietro Barachini,
the founder of iOlive and a professional olive oil taster. “But the wine
industry has done a much better job of educating customers on how to
evaluate, buy and enjoy wine. That’s why I created iOlive and began
working closely with brands in Tuscany. I believe it will do for olive
oil consumers what the leading wine apps have done for wine lovers. And
I’m very excited about using Thinfilm’s SpeedTap technology to take it
to the next level.”
Thinfilm’s SpeedTap tags are thin, flexible devices that integrate
with a product’s packaging or label and can be read with the tap of an
NFC-enabled smartphone. Each tag is uniquely identifiable and is
virtually impossible to clone. Once tapped, the tag wirelessly
communicates with the cloud, enabling brands to connect directly with
their customers and instantly deliver authentication messaging, product
information, and other relevant content. More